This invention relates generally to refrigerators, and more particularly, to a temperature controlled compartment in refrigerators.
Some known refrigerators include a fresh food compartment and a freezer compartment, each with their own respective compartment door. Such a refrigerator also typically includes a refrigeration sealed circuit including a compressor, an evaporator, and a condenser connected in series. An evaporator fan is provided to blow air over the evaporator, and a condenser fan is provided to blow air over the condenser.
In operation, when an upper temperature limit is reached in the freezer compartment, the compressor, evaporator fan, and condenser fan are energized. Once the temperature in the freezer compartment reaches a lower temperature limit, the compressor, evaporator fan, and condenser fan are de-energized.
Known refrigerators typically have control knobs to adjust fresh food and freezer compartment temperatures. At each combined setting of the control knobs, there is a target set of fresh food and freezer temperatures that an ideal refrigerator should achieve, independent of ambient conditions. However, fresh food and freezer compartments do not allow for a separate storage area within each compartment door that has a temperature which is controlled independently of the fresh food or freezer compartment temperatures.